A ''monopole'' (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

for 'monopoly') is an area controlled by a single

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

(wine company) and can be as small as a named vineyard (''

lieu-dit ''Lieu-dit'' (; plural: ''lieux-dits'') (literally ''said-location'') is a French toponymic term for a small geographical area bearing a traditional name. The name usually refers to some characteristic of the place, its former use, a past event, ...

'') or as large as an entire''

appellation d'origine contrôlée An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

'' (AOC). Frequently this is mentioned on the label as it is rare for only one winery to produce all the wine from an area entitled to a certain name. Each wine is sold by only one company. The

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

ic inheritance laws typically caused vineyards to be so finely divided among inheritors -down to even a single row of vines- that ''

négociants A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by winery, wineries or :Wine companies, wine companies, where their work includes: *Cooperating with viticulture, viticulturists *Monitoring the maturity of grape ...

'' are needed to bottle commercial quantities of a

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

. Whether a ''monopole'' indicates a wine of unusual quality or not is a matter of debate.

List of ''monopoles'' (in need of expansion)

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

: Others *

Château-Grillet AOC Château-Grillet is a wine-growing AOC in the northern Rhône wine region of France, near Vienne, which produces white wine from Viognier grapes. The whole appellation, which is only in size, is owned by a single winery, Château-Grillet. The app ...

, of Château Grillet. * Savennières-Coulée-de-Serrant, owned by Nicolas Joly.

References

{{reflist Wine terminology

List of ''monopoles'' (in need of expansion)

See also

References